Bolero of Fire, Part I
by Spade
Summary: I hope this uploads....this has to be the hundredth time I'm trying to get this to work...sorry I took forever...for those who wanted it, I put up the next part.
1. Default Chapter Title

This is the first ever serious fic I am writing. And the first Ronin Warrior fic as well; but I'm going by the Japanese virtues, because I like them better. You would not believe at how much I yelled at the people who translated Y. S. T. Life-force isn't even a virtue and Rowen should have wisdom. Here's a guide.  
Ryo-Benevolence  
Sage-Courtesy  
Sai-Trust  
Kinto-Justice  
Rowen-Wisdom.   
I am going out the humor thing for a bit and I am turning my attention to.....stuff. But that does not mean I will stop writing funny fictions completely. This is an usual story, because one, like Star Wars, the epilogues come first before the prologues, so only reviews, good ones, will make me write a prologue to this series. But before I begin, I would like to get all the humor out of my system. *closes eyes*  
RYO: What are you doing?  
ANGEL: Great! You made me lose my concentration! Oh well, I'll get you back.....*grins evilly*  
RYO *sweatdrops of fear appear on his head* : What are you going to do.....?  
ANGEL: Nothing, nothing of course *begins to cackle*  
RYO: Oh my.....  
ANGEL: I would like to warn there will be Shounen-ai through the entire series, some stories will have it in a higher degree than others. Shounen-ai means "boy love" Don't read if you hate the very thought. They are far more open-minded in Japan which is why they made it up in the first place; and I thank them greatly for it. And, if you think I own Ronin Warriors, there is something seriously wrong with your brain. But arigato if you thought I did.  
  
  
  
Bolero of Fire  
  
  
He had always wondered about his family. It was obvious, for he never knew the people that were a part of him, shaped the way he was now. Family and heritage were important. If one was not careful, their whole existence could be buried under the sands of time, washed away in the sea of forgetfulness. He had always valued family, unlike a couple of others he knew. Others who were lucky. They knew their mother and father, they had the joy of having a sister or brother. He had a sister once, but she's gone, to join the rest of his family; they left him behind. They left him behind. How could they? Why did they? Didn't they love him? Didn't they see him as a part of their clan? No, they didn't acknowledge him at all. They left him by himself, like some forgettable piece of trash. So, his heritage was long lost in time, never to come back. His children, if he had any, would never know who they were, just like him. They would become lost as well.  
Time. What defined time anyway? It was a cold monster, that's what time meant for him. Time did not stop for anybody. Time brought death and despair, it brought hate and fear. It ruled over others, dictated their lives. If anything, the last thing this world needed was time; his philosophy. Time was just like life; both sucked. But time and life weren't unfair, they weren't fair either. They just....were. Who was he to judge if anything was fair or unfair? He could say his life was shit. Maybe it was. But it depends on the mood he was in at the moment. There was such a fine line between normalcy and despair; and he had crossed the line and was deep into the territory of abnormal. He was a freak, to put it lightly, one that had no desire to live, but carried on anyway. He brushed one ebony lock from his face and began to dig with his hands into the cold earth. He began to dig his own grave.  
  
Article I  
  
Ryo was never one for fashion. He didn't care about his appearance, what was to that anyway? He didn't really see the importance of spending valuable time in the bathroom, getting your hair just so, only to have a couple of people see it, and not even for a long time. Just a quick combing of hair, a clean shirt and jeans, and you could be ready to go and not look like crap. He usually didn't care about his looks, but now....Ryo stared at his reflection, at the almond shaped eyes, the small nose, the small mouth. After all, it was just you. Why kill yourself for others? Why? What was the point?!?! Why did we, as humans, change ourselves for another's benefit? He closed his eyes, sick of himself. A thin sob left his mouth. Because, he answered himself, that's just the way humans were. Humans were selfish, greedy things, only caring about themselves. Yeah, humans can put others above themselves at times, but, when it comes down to it, not one human can say honestly that they have not thought about only their well being. Ryo opened his eyes again, frowning at himself. What had happened to him? He turned away and looked at the person behind him.  
"We shouldn't do this." he whispered. The person looked back with expressionless eyes, not saying a thing. "Let me go, I can't, I don't want to...."  
"You will do as you are told." A voice interrupted him. The voice was so cold, matching the ice in the person's eyes. Ryo turned away, looking back at the mirror. He moved up a hand and touched his face. He studied the markings that were painted on the golden skin, the eyelid paint that resembled Kayura's, the stripes that lined his cheeks. This was not him. Ryo shifted on his legs, uncomfortable.  
"Where are the others?" He did not like the way the person was studying him, like he was a piece of art. The person smiled thinly and knelt down beside Ryo.  
"That is not your concern. Now, get up." It wasn't a request. Ryo nodded and stood in one fluid motion, keeping his head down. His knee long hair covered his profile, so the other could not see the tears. He felt a hand cup his chin and force his face upwards. Ryo tried to blink away the tears, but it was to no avail.  
"Why do you cry? You are safe and sound." Ryo tried to pull away but the other held him tight. "Now, you will do as you are told, or maybe you would rather for the 'others' to fall into an unfortunate accident." The other pulled him close, so that their noses were just inches away. "You look exquisite when you're afraid." Ryo managed to push the other away from him and stepped backwards, looking for an escape. There was none.  
"Leave me alone." The other laughed, it was not pleasant.  
"Ah, but I won't. You're very important."  
"I don't know what you're up to Macabre, and I don't care. I will get out of here."  
"I see some of that spark is back. Follow me, and you will be able to see the your friends." Ryo hesitated. There was something in Macabre's voice that made him uneasy, but he obediently followed. They walked down cold stone halls, which were wet with moisture and in some parts covered with moss. Ryo's bare feet echoed softly in the halls, but the other's feet were silent. They were going deeper underground, he noticed, and he listened to the slow drip of water. It was so dark here, he could barely see. It also felt bad, like this little feeling you get that everything is not the way it seems. A feeling of weakness passed through him. It wasn't unusual, he felt so weak lately, yet he was also so very strong. Of course his body plays tricks on him, everything else does. Everything....his crimson kimono became heavy suddenly, and he stumbled forward. Macabre caught him, chuckling softly.  
"I see we haven't recovered yet." Ryo scowled but it went unnoticed in the dark.  
"Shut up." he hissed. The other wrapped his hand around Ryo's throat and began to squeeze. For an agonizingly long second, Ryo couldn't breath.  
"Don't tell me what to do little one. Your power is nowhere near mine, even with your precious Inferno armor, and I won't hesitate to destroy you."  
"Then why haven't you already?" Ryo growled.  
"Wouldn't you like to know. I have yet to use you, but soon, you shall see why I have went to this much trouble," the other let go of Ryo's neck and stepped back, "You are the key, little one, and so is that necklace." Ryo's hand went up to his neck to the small, black key that hung on a gold chain. It was his Grandmother's, who had passed it on to him when she died. Another person who left him behind.  
"What does Grandmother's necklace have anything to do with this?"  
"Silly boy, you are so ignorant. That key will unlock secrets that your mind could not hope to fathom. And, hopefully, it will unlock your secrets as well." Ryo blinked and instinctively moved away from Macabre, afraid what he might mean by unlocking his secrets. He recovered from his nervousness and took a deep breath.  
Ryo walked briskly past the other looking back occasionally. Macabre noticed this and gave a feral grin. He followed Ryo, watching every move he made. They made it to the dungeons and stopped, having no need to go further for the time being. Ryo walked up to a cell door and peeked in between the bars; he had to stand on the balls of his feet to do so. He saw a pale, blue-haired young man lying on the floor, staring up at the ceiling.  
"Rowen?" He whispered, voice shaking. Rowan looked at Ryo, blinking.  
"Ryo." He answered. Rowan sat up and stared at the door. "Go away Ryo."  
"Rowen..." Ryo said sorrowfully, he bit his lip and looked at the floor, "I'm really sorry Rowen..."  
"Yeah, well," came a harsh voice, scathing and unapologetic, "I really believe that."  
"But..."  
"Go away with your precious Lord and leave me alone, traitor." Ryo jerked back, stung.  
"I am not a traitor." But Ryo didn't really believe he wasn't himself.  
"You can't fool me Ryo. You sold us out for him, that son of a bitch. When we get out of here, you're going down with the jerk."  
"Come little one," Macabre said and gently grabbed Ryo's arm, pulling him away, "we have four more to see, and I bet they will be just as happy to see your lovely face." Ryo opened his mouth to object but found himself walking to the next cell and looking in. There in the corner sat a skinny auburn haired youth and in the opposite corner was a sturdy looking, ash haired teen.  
"Sai? Kinto?" Ryo murmured, not brave enough to raise his voice any higher; yet, somehow, Kinto heard him and raised his head. Sai did as well. Ryo saw several bruises on both of their faces and signs of hunger almost as plain as the purple and black welts.  
"What are you doing here?" Kinto as gruffly, his voice sounding like sandpaper from lack of use.  
"To see you." Ryo said quietly, avoiding their faces.  
"Why? You did your damage."  
"Kinto I," Ryo trailed off, throat tightening, "please guys, I'm really sorry. I never meant to hurt you."  
"Could have fooled me."  
"Ryo," Ryo looked up when Sai called him, "you had better go."  
"Yeah, leave you worthless piece of crap. Benevolence, ha, you make me sick." Ryo took a step backwards, running into his captor. He whirled around.  
"We have one more cell to visit." Ryo shook his head, not wanting to continue.  
"No, please..."  
"You have to, it's for your own good." The man grabbed Ryo's arm and hauled him to the last cell and pushed Ryo forward, forcing him to look in. Ryo painfully stared at the teen in the center of the cold, damp cell. The teen had unusually styled hair, and was a dirty blond, though you could tell it used to be a lighter shade. The teen's eyes were closed and he was arranged in a fetal position.  
"Oh Sage." Ryo tried to back away but he was held firm. Sage opened his eyes and they locked on Ryo's. The pale violet eyes were full of emotion, yet were empty at the same time. They stared at each other until Sage closed his eyes again. That hurt more than anything Rowen and Kinto could throw at him. He had never felt so lost. Yet he deserved their retribution, he had done something unforgivable. He felt sick. The reality of it all came crashing down on his already vulnerable soul. What had he done? He felt like vomiting. Ryo raised both hands and pressed him to his heart. Cold, that was what he felt, cold. He shivered. He was dimly aware of Macabre leading him from the dungeons to the throne room. Ryo felt like his insides were frozen, he could barely walk and had trouble breathing. Everybody was leaving him, every last person was leaving him behind. Images floated up in his head. He had always been alone, from the day he was born.  
"You were born alone and you will die alone..." a voice whispered in his ear.  
Images of his mother going away and never coming back, of his father traveling all around the world, leaving him by himself.  
"You are unwanted..." It was true, wasn't it? It was so true. Ryo realized that he was in a room with no windows or doors, by himself, only with his thoughts. He held his head and screamed; he didn't notice the red orb in the key was glowing.  
  
Sage continued to meditate, separating his mind from his body, so he wouldn't suffer from the pain that plagued him; physically and spiritually. He could escape the ache for now, but it would come back, and with a vengeance. He gave a soft moan as he placed a hand over his heart. It hurt, so much, to see Ryo with....that demon.  
"Ryo, what have you done? Why did you betray us?" He shook his head. Ryo, the last person they would have expected to turn on them. "Ryo..." He tried to picture the Ryo before this, before he changed.  
His hair certainly wasn't that long to begin with, it used to be shoulder length, before he had allowed it to grow out to the waist and kept it there. Ryo would never have wanted to deal with that much hair now. Before, Ryo would smile all the time, as if he had this humorous secret that only he knew and would share with only a few; Ryo had offered to let Sage into the joke, but he had declined. What an idiot he had been! Was this why Ryo changed sides in the battle? Was it? Was it because he was being too damn cowardly to admit what he felt for him that caused him to walk astray? He had noticed, before the fateful battle, that Ryo's attitude had changed dramatically. He should have seen it, but he was too busy ignoring Ryo to notice. Damn. The more he thought about it, the more Sage thought he was to blame. Now Ryo had lost that emotional spark that came with his character. His soul was empty. Sage wanted to go back in time and correct his mistake, longing to hold Ryo again and telling him that everything would be okay. But that was all it was, a longing wish that would never come true. Sage gave up on trying to meditate and lay down on the unforgiving floor. He wanted his old Ryo back, the short tempered, outgoing, and friendly young man who didn't take crap from anyone. He knew what the others thought. They believed now that the old Ryo was dead, and the new one should be killed. Sage didn't believe it, or maybe he didn't want to. No, the old Ryo was in there somewhere, but where, and how he was going to come out was beyond him. Sage sat up, restless. How long were they in here? Days? Weeks? Months? Shouldn't the ex-Warlords and Kayura have noticed something by now? Mia would have and she would have contacted them. Doesn't anyone know they were missing? What if Macabre got them? He was certainly powerful enough to do that. Macabre. That name made Sage want to go mad. It was Macabre's fault, everything that happened. Macabre turned Ryo against them; yes, that was it. Ryo would never have gone with him on his own free will....right? Or maybe he was being foolish. Maybe he was seeing things the way they were not. Rowen could be right; Ryo was a traitor. But he couldn't be, it just had to be a misunderstanding of some sort. Sage prayed that Ryo wasn't a traitor. He prayed that Ryo still had something left of his feelings. Most of all, if Ryo was a traitor, Sage prayed that it wasn't his fault. He pictured Ryo, not adorned in odd looking robes and with a painted face. He pictured Ryo's slightly slanted tiger blue eyes that were so full of fire; that was what attracted him the most. No human should have that shade of blue. Not to mention White Blaze's eyes were brown, and not any White Siberian tiger should have that color of eyes. Once you think about it, if White Blaze and Ryo would switch eye colors, then they would be normal; but Sage didn't want Ryo normal. He wanted just plain Ryo. He stood and paced around the small enclosed area, arms crossed and deep in thought. He had to find a way out of here so he could go and save Ryo.  
"Ryo, I'm sorry, but I'm completely useless right now." He stopped his pacing and tilted his head backwards, closing his eyes. He silently willed for an escape, he needed to see Ryo, to show him he still cared. He was very surprised when his door was thrown open. He opened his eyes and snapped his head towards the sound. He saw Rowen, Sai, and Kinto standing in the doorway, motioning for him to come.  
"How did you...." The question died on his lips as he saw Macabre smirking at him. "You..." Sage felt barely controlled rage flow through him and took a step towards the door.  
"It's nice to see you too."  
"What do you want? Why are you letting us go?" Macabre snorted.  
"Let you go? You must be joking. I am going to let you see why you were brought here." Sage hesitated, but marched out of the cell. He blinked when his eyes were met with more light than he had seen in a long time.  
"If you all will follow me, and let me remind you, no attacking from behind or trying to escape. You'll just waste your life." He chuckled at his own joke and began to lead the way out of the cold prison.  
"Where are we going?"  
"To the throne room." The walk from the dungeons to the throne room seemed to take all eternity and Sage became more apprehensive as the seconds passed. Something was seriously not right, like it was right from the beginning, but still, something was seriously wrong. He realized what it was as Macabre threw open a pair of thick, heavy doors.   
"Here it is! It may not look like much, I'm having it redecorated." That was the understatement of the century. The room resembled a monastery, the ceiling was so high that you could barely make out the details. The walls were an ivory color and seemed to sparkle. The floor was made of light gray marble and smooth as glass. Across from them at the very end of the room, sat a large throne. But, sitting like a statue in that throne was someone they thought they knew.  
"Ryo...." Sage whispered. Ryo's appearance had changed once more. The long hair was drawn back into a high ponytail and he was dressed in a short, black robe that ended just above the knees. A key kept on a chain was hanging from his neck and rested just below his collarbone. He had on gold bands on his upper arms and what looked like gold manacles on his ankles; he wore no shoes. Ryo's eyes were closed, and the black eye paint made him look demonic.  
"Why are we here?" Rowen asked, staring suspiciously at Ryo who seemed to not acknowledge their presence.  
"To battle."  
"What?!?" Sai cried.  
"Yes. My objective is to unlock the gates to the Spirit Realm. If I do so, then I will gain immortal power. But there is one problem; you. I can't gain blessed immortality if you stand in my path, so the newest edition to my little family will ensure I win."  
"Ryo wouldn't do that!" Sage cried. Macabre gave him an unreadable expression.  
"He has tried before, and nearly succeeded. What makes you think he won't try again?" Sage didn't answer him and narrowed his eyes.  
"Why don't you just do it yourself? After all, you are Macabre, Demon of the Underworld." Kinto didn't try to hide the sarcasm in his voice.  
"Why get my hands dirty when I have someone to do it for me? And, it will be much more fun to watch you destroy yourselves." Macabre began to laugh, an odd hollow sound that echoed all around them and the air seemed to drop a couple of degrees. "Let the games begin!" He continued to laugh as he and the doors faded away.  
"Get back here!" yelled Sage. Nothing answered him. He turned his attention back to Ryo, who had yet to move.  
"What should we do?" whispered Sai.  
"Take him out." Rowen and Kinto said without hesitation.  
"No! We can't!" Kinto looked at Sage, annoyed.  
"Look blondie. I know it's hard to accept, but Ryo is gone. He is now a demon who is after our blood."  
"No, he's not, he's still Ryo!"  
"Only in your little world." Sage took a small step backwards. He had never seen Kinto so venomous. They all looked at Ryo, still sitting on the throne. The air was tense as they waited. All of the sudden, Ryo's eyes snapped open, the pupils gone; they looked dead. Ryo stood and took two steps forward. He leisurely raised his arms in a stretch, yawning as he did so, showing off a glistening pair of inch long fangs where the upper canines should be. His movements were fluid and cat-like. He hopped down the carpeted stairs leading to the throne, two at a time and landed gently at the bottom. He seemed to just notice that the remaining Ronins were in the same room.  
"Hello," He slowly lowered his arms and cocked his head. He smirked. "we are supposed to battle?" The last word came out in a light, sarcastic tone. Kinto bristled.  
"Ryo! I'll kill you for this." Ryo blinked.  
"Oh, that was very nice. Why all the negativity," he chuckled and gave a mocking bow, "I suggest you don't make yourselves too comfortable, this won't take very long at all. As instructed by Macabre, I am to play a game with you. Are you interested?"  
"We'd rather swallow barbed wire!" shouted Rowen.  
"Oh, but I don't think you have a choice. You see, you are becoming such a horrible nuisance. And I must say, you'll have to removed."  
"Ryo, please, don't do this." Sage said, taking a step forward. Ryo looked at him.  
"I will do as I am told." The voice was flat, dead, like he was brainwashed.  
"Sage! Get off it! Ryo is gone!" Rowen cried, slipping back into a fighting stance. The others did as well, except Sage who just stared at them. This was wrong, it felt wrong. What would the Ancient say if he saw this? He wouldn't say anything, just be disappointed.  
"Ryo! Don't make us do this! I don't want to kill a friend! Just come back to our side, and you'll be spared!" shouted Sai.  
"You? Kill me? Ha! My, don't we have a sense of humor?" Ryo chuckled. "Enough of this. I want to finish what we started. The pain you felt then will be nothing compared to what you will soon experience. Oh, I would also like to tell you that any chance you had of living has flown out of the window." Ryo walked towards them, his steps small and slow. The Ronins tensed and readied themselves. Then Ryo brought out into a run he covered the distance between them in a split second. He leapt high in the air and came down on them from the above. They barely managed to get out of the way when Ryo came down. A loud boom echoed throughout the throne room and the Ronins gaped as they saw Ryo with his fist in the marble floor. Apparently he had punched right through it. That could have very well been their heads. Ryo looked up at them and grinned.  
"Very good. Not just anybody could have avoided that. I'm afraid you'll have to do better, though." He removed his hand from the floor and flipped neatly over their heads. The gem in the key flared suddenly and the Ronins were thrown forward into the opposite wall. Kinto picked himself up painfully from the floor and glared at Ryo.  
"It'll take a lot more than that to beat us! Armor of Hardrock! Tao gi!" Ryo watched as the cherry blossoms flew around Kinto and hardened into this mystical armor.  
"I am so not impressed..." He was cut off when Kinto charged forward and hit him with all of his strength on the side of his head with his naginta. A loud cracking sound filled the area and Ryo flew sideways like a rag doll and landed hard on the marble floor, skidded several feet, and stopped when he hit the wall, creating a dust cloud as he did so. Kinto smirked in triumph. The others came up beside him, still in their sub-armor.  
"Is he?..." Sage whispered.  
"Should be. He didn't have his armor on." Rowen said. Sage jerked forward suddenly, an incredible pain in his chest, where his heart was. Ryo couldn't be.....no. Sai stepped forward worriedly, but Rowen held him back, shaking his head.   
"He needs to get over it on his own."  
"But..." He stopped when he saw a pinprick of red light in the dust. "No, that's impossible."  
"But it's very true." Came a voice from the dust. Two red eyes appeared in the center, looking at them murderously. "You surprise me, I underestimated you. A mistake that would be easily remedied." The dust cleared and there sat Ryo, cross legged on a large slab of fallen wall. His eyes glowed a blood red, and his hair moved by a magical wind and floated around his head.  
"But you also made a mistake, would you like me to tell you Kinto? You always liked to jump into battle head first." Ryo didn't wait for him to answer and his eyes narrowed to slits. "You underestimated me." Ryo jumped off the slab and landed on the floor, before instantly kicking off it and charging at Kinto. When he got near, Kinto swung his weapon again, but Ryo ducked and lashed out. Kinto flew backwards and hit the opposite wall. Ryo ran across the distance in startling speed. Kinto managed to stand up only to have Ryo hit him into the wall again. Ryo took a step back and waited for Kinto to stand. He was leaning heavily on his weapon.  
"Just because I don't wear an armor, does not mean I will be easy to fight. Haven't you learned anything when we were battling Talpa's forces? You remember Lady Kayura, don't you?" He sighed. "I don't suppose you do, the only things you remember after a long period of time are breakfast, lunch, and dinner." Kinto snarled and punched at Ryo's face. Ryo held up his hand and seemed to almost lazily catch his punch. Kinto gasped as Ryo grabbed his fist and used his other hand to grab the large arm. He threw Kinto across the room. He landed at the Ronins feet, moaning in pain. Sai knelt beside his friend.  
"Kinto! Answer me! Are you okay?!?"  
"This fight is over. He was the strongest one of the lot. Pathetic. Makes me wonder why I didn't join up with Macabre sooner."  
"You...you bastard! Armor of Strata, Tao chi!" Sai stood and raised his arms.  
"Armor of Torrent, Tao shin!" Ryo smirked as they called their battle armor. Two against one. How exciting. Now they were going to feel the pain he went through his whole life. If he had to suffer, everyone else had to as well. Shin and Rowen charged at Ryo at the same time. Rowen shot off volley after volley of arrows; Ryo leapt to one side, barely missing getting hit. Rowen tried again, except he focused all of his power into one arrow.  
"Arrow Shock...WAVE!" The beam of energy flew forward at blinding speed, causing the whole room to light up. The Ronins covered their eyes except for Kinto who was unconscious. When the light cleared, Rowen nearly dropped his bow in shock. Ryo was standing, not a hair out of place, holding the golden arrow. He tossed it from hand to hand before snapping it in half.  
"And you were supposed to be the Warrior of Wisdom," Ryo shook his head, "you think you would be smart enough to just surrender, make death easier for you and your little friends, but no. You just have to fight a meaningless battle. I thought you were too smart for that Rowen, after all, with an IQ over 200. But I guess common sense didn't come with the package." Rowen grit his teeth but didn't move. A bum rush certainly wouldn't work.  
"Super Wave...SMASHER!!" Ryo's head snapped up and surprise shown on his face as the thick stream of water barreled towards him. It hit him and carried him up towards the ceiling. Demonic shrieks of pain and rage filled the room, echoing as it bounced off the walls; it sent a chill through anybody who heard. Sage looked on, not having moved from Kinto's side.   
"That's not Ryo, he would never do this." The shrieks stopped and Ryo fell to the ground, soaked and unmoving.  
"He's not even human anymore..." Sage blinked back tears, "he's gone, he really is gone." Sai prepared to release another sure-kill but stopped when a red light surrounded him. He looked around wildly and saw that the key was glowing. He was lifted off the ground and thrown into Rowen and they both fell heavily to the ground and didn't move. Ryo flipped up agilely and squeezed excess water from his hair. He stood and walked over to the fallen pair. Using his foot, he kicked Sai off of Rowen and smiled when he heard a sharp cry of pain. Sage stood and ran a couple of feet before stopping.  
"Ryo! Stop!" Ryo looked over his shoulder at Halo.   
"Oh, it's you." Ryo turned back around.  
"Ryo! What is with you?!? Goddamn it! Why?!?" Ryo didn't turn back around.  
"You wouldn't understand."  
"Like hell I won't! Why did you turn on us, on me?!?" Sage blinked away tears of anger. He had to get a hold of himself.  
"Who are you to say that to me?!?! I didn't turn on you! You turned on me! You left me alone! Why did you leave me alone?!?!?!?!" Ryo spun around, his eyes wild. "Why is everyone leaving me?!?! What did I do?!?!"  
"You betrayed them! Who would want to stay with a traitor?!?!"  
"SHUT UP!!!!!" Ryo shrieked and knocked Sage down with a blast of energy. Sage slowly got up, eyes hard.  
"That's right Ryo. You betrayed all of them. That's why you're alone." Ryo shook his head. Why was it so cold? Didn't Sage feel it? It was so cold. Ryo wrapped his arms around him and shivered. So cold, so cold. He fell on his knees and moaned. He was freezing.  
"Ryo?" Sage asked silently. He could only watch as Ryo curled up into a small ball, feeling a coldness that wasn't even present.  
  
Macabre was furious. The battle was fun at first. He had enjoyed watching the way Ryo moved and toyed with the Ronins. Ryo's style of fighting amazed him, strike fast and hard, then retreat. And the way Ryo's body performed these techniques sent shivers of excitement through him. But then he frowned a bit when Ryo got hit twice, two times too many. But he recovered quickly and released a barrage of attacks that totally wiped out the offenders. There was only one Ronin left that was able to even move. But instead of fighting, the Ronin talked to Ryo. Macabre didn't know what he said but he was greatly surprised when Ryo collapsed and folded up like a scared child. He teleported at once to the battle sight, and his frown deepened when he saw Halo hesitantly approach the still Ryo, and was about to touch him if he hadn't interrupted.  
"I see you defeated him; barely," Macabre shrugged, trying to hide his fury behind a nonchalant exterior, "well, that was very entertaining. We'll have to do it again. I will be seeing you later. You will be given medical attention and food and water. Have a nice stay; it won't last long." He snapped his fingers and the Ronins vanished from where they were. Macabre approached Ryo, who was still in his ball.  
"Little one, get up." Ryo didn't move, only shivered in response. "Little one!"  
"It's so cold in here." Macabre blinked. Impossible. If anything, it was hot. "Why is it cold? Macabre, it's like ice..." Macabre shook his head and said nothing. He turned and left Ryo in his condition.  
'Poor crazy Little one.' Thought Macabre as he teleported from the room. Unnoticed by him, Ryo was watching him, his eyes wide.  
"You left me too..." His voice was small and wavering. "They all did, I'm alone again..."  
  
The fire diminished into a lone point of light in the vast cold wasteland...  
  
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Did you like? Only your reviews will make me write a continuing part to this, and eventually, a prologue. This turned out better than I thought! Maybe I should do this more often!  
RYO: How come I was the bad guy?  
ANGEL: Said I was gonna get you back.  
RYO: And why am I so afraid of being alone? And why am I always cold?  
ANGEL: Do not worry your pretty little head, it will all make sense as the story continues.  
SEIJI: Please review, I wanna find out what happens to Ryo-koi.  
SAGE: Weren't you going by our series instead of theirs?  
SEIJI: ????????????  
ANGEL: Yeah, but I'm borrowing their virtues. Gomen, but I hate yours.  
TOUMA: I do too, my alternate's virtue bites.  
ROWEN: I know, I don't like Life-force myself.  
ANGEL: Since both the Troopers and Ronins are here, let's watch a movie!  
KINTO: Oooh! South Park!  
SHIN: Masaka! We'll watch Casablanca.  
SAI: I agree with my alternate.  
RYO AND RYO: Sixth Sense!  
ANGEL: This may take a while.....Anywho, review please!!  
ALL: Ja!!! *scuffle breaks out over movies*  



	2. Changes

ANGEL: Konnichi wa minna-san. I'm alive!!!! Oh, I have a lot of apologizing to do. Sorry I was so late on this...my computer wouldn't go to Fanfiction.net...then it won't upload the damn story...then there's my mental problems you know...adding to the ones that I already have....  
RYO: I'll say.  
ANGEL: Don't push it Pyro. Anyway, I would also like to do a lot of thanking. I would like to thank all the reviewers who have supported me. Thank you so very much. I greatly appreciate the person who called me a god...*giggles* That was very nice.  
TOUMA: Yeah, but they were so very far from the truth.  
ANGEL: Grrr....*whips out giant frying pan*  
SAGE: Whoa....  
ANGEL: It's the AnimeBuster Titanium Giant Frying Pan. This titanium lined beauty is great for getting rid of annoying ex's, unwanted guests, and can stop silliness in a heartbeat. It is also very light, and can go into any Space Pocket along with pigeon friends and water buffaloes(inside joke btw). A perfect gift for your friends and family. And how much do you think it costs?  
RYO: 29.95?  
ANGEL: No!  
SHIN: 50.00?  
ANGEL: No way!!  
SEIJI: My entire life's savings?  
KINTO: My soul?  
ANGEL: No! It only costs 19.99! And if you order now, we'll also throw in....this giant paper Fan from FanCo. Cuz if it's not FanCo, it's not worth your time!   
ROWEN: ......That was so very pointless.  
SAI: And since when did you do shameless advertising?  
ANGEL: None of your business. And, to be serious, I truly am sorry I took so long on this. Bolero of Fire I was a long time ago and I should have worked harder to get this one out. Sorry. Not to mention that the piece of shit that claims to be my computer that I'm working with is making this difficult. It had the nerve to shut down on me! What...what...Oooh!!!!!  
RYO: N E ways, Angel would like for you to know that the characters in this fanfiction are not hers. They belong to some people more powerful than her. She is just borrowing them for the use of your visual pleasure...and her own...  
RYO: Also, there is shounen-ai/boy-boy love in this fanfiction, so yaoi haters make their leave....NOW. I repeat, make your leave NOW. Because Angel is not responsible for the warping of minds. She can't afford to pay for lawyers. Besides, she needs to pay for her own mental medication, so do not complicate matters.  
RYO: Also, it would be best if you read this with an open mind...try to figure out the message she's getting across. You can even guess if you want.  
RYO: No bishounen were harmed in the making of this fanfiction.  
ANGEL: Good job guys...oh yeah! Ryo and Ryo stand invincible to your flames! *pushes them to the front*  
RYO and RYO: Hey!!!  
ANGEL: Hee hee!!!!  
  
Bolero of Fire, part II  
  
It took several days, even with the help of the armor, for the three Ronins to recover from Ryo's assault. They each felt a distinct disliking towards their former leader, with a possible exception. Sage had closed himself to everyone and everything, sitting as far away as he could from everything in a corner.  
"Sage, come and eat something." Sai begged. Sage didn't answer, he didn't even move.  
"Sai, let him be." Rowen said. "He needs to be alone."  
"But he's been alone long enough! He needs to snap out of it!" cried Kinto, wincing as his outburst jarred his still tender ribs.  
"He'll never recover," Sai said quietly, "he'll never be the same. He lost something very important to him."  
"I bet 'The Traitor' is watching us right now, laughing his heart out." Kinto muttered. They had long since stopped calling Ryo by his original name. Rowen nodded in agreement and took a bite from a small loaf of bread. They needed all of their strength if they wanted to battle him again.  
"We need a plan if we want to beat him." Sai said. "Brute strength won't work, he's too powerful, and he's not even using his armor."  
"The only way we can win is if we attack together. He surely can't withstand all of our sure kills at once. Remember the way Sai's sure-kill hurt him? He's still substantial to water, we need to capitalize on that before that weakness leaves." Reasoned Rowen, brushing that pesky forelock from his face, only to have it fall back into place. Kinto nodded, and looked at Sage.  
"Can we count on you Halo?" He asked. Sage didn't answer. "Fine, be that way..."  
"I'll help." Came a quiet reply. They stared at Sage, whose eyes were closed.  
"You will?" Sai said hopefully. Sage opened his eyes and glanced at them.  
"....Yeah...."  
"What caused this change of heart all of the sudden?" asked Rowen. Sage didn't say anything for several long seconds.  
"Because," he whispered, "he would want us to stop him." Kinto snorted.  
"I knew it was too good to be true. Sage, I don't want to sound mean, but get over it. He will kill you in a second. You have got to get over him, I don't care how, but you have to."  
~*~  
"Papa! Don't leave me alone!" The small boy grabbed the older man's wrist and dug his heels into the ground to keep the other from leaving. The man sighed and shook his hand until the boy's grip was lost and he fell to the ground.  
"I have to, now get back inside before you catch a cold."  
"Don't leave me!" The boy cried again, tears sparkling in his large eyes. "Why are you going?!?"  
"Because I have to, you know that. Sometimes we are left alone, but I will come back."  
"Do you promise?"  
"I promise. Now go inside." The boy nodded and slowly walked back towards the cabin door, looking over his shoulder.  
"Go on." The boy ran inside and shut the door. The man smirked and walked away.  
He never came back. They boy waited and waited, but no one came. He was hungry, sick, and miserable. The cabin seemed empty now, and cold. But worst of all, he was by himself. He had always had a fear of being by himself, he couldn't explain it and he didn't know where it came from. People said it was unreasonable, but the boy was positive there was a secret behind it. A secret that lay in the recesses of his mind, far beyond his reach. He spent his time playing with a ivory key with a pretty crimson gem in the top part. Sometimes, if he concentrated, it could glow. He faintly remembered his grandmother giving this to him, saying something along the lines that it was special item. He asked if it was magical, and she said it was. He never took it off its chain.  
Then the men had come and took him away. He never saw his cabin again.  
The orphanage was a nice place. With a lot of nice people. He had made friends, and he was never alone.   
  
So why was he still lonely?.....  
~*~  
"I'm seeing things," Ryo whispered to Macabre, "There are things in my mind that weren't there before..."  
Macabre raised an eyebrow, "Oh? Could it be a brain cell perhaps?" Ryo ignored the insult, Macabre was a little upset over the loss.  
"No, pictures...and I'm forgetting things too. What's wrong with me? Could it be that Ronin I was fighting?"  
"Which one?"  
"The green one...what's-his-name."  
"Sage of Halo. Or, if you want to go by the legend, Korin no Seiji."  
"That's right. I felt I knew him from somewhere..." Macabre sighed and looked at the wine in his goblet. He never thought the dark magik would affect his mind like that. Macabre looked at Ryo ironically. They said the heir was the one of the most powerful and wisest in the lands....one out of two isn't too bad.  
"You are only supposed to follow my orders Little One. Do not think about such trivial humans. They aren't like you and I."  
"But what are we like? They look like us."  
"Little One...do not question me."  
"Yes..." But he was unconvinced. Humans were complex beings, with complex minds. They have such darkness, such power in their brain that even they do not comprehend it. They had hopes, dreams, secrets, fears, hates...just like him. Was he human once?....he couldn't remember.  
"Go. Rest. The last battle nearly undid all of my precious work," Macabre sipped his red wine, smiling as the warm liquid slid down his throat, "we can't let that happen. Understood?" Ryo didn't answer but bowed.  
"I understand. But...I feel that it is important. Important..."  
"The only thing that is important is to accomplish my goal of immortality and ruling over the Three Realms. You will help me achieve my goal, my dream. I want to do what Talpa could not. Sure, it seemed at the time that he wanted to just rule the Netherealm and the Human World, but he had a much bigger designs in mind...Have you ever heard of the Ruby?"  
"Ruby? Who's Talpa? He sounds familiar."  
Macabre sighed, "Forget about him. The Ruby is probably one of the most powerful gem in all the Three Realms...with the exception of the Jewel of Life, it's counterpart."  
"But...I remember you telling me that the Jewel of Life and Inferno..." Ryo was unsure of this too. God, was he mad? He couldn't trust himself anymore.  
"Ah, you're talking about the legend, aren't you? Well, when the Ruby, the Jewel of Life, and the treasures of Hariel are all put together, they form into an object of power. Whoever holds this object of power will be granted eternal life, endless power, and rule over the Three Realms! Don't you see why we have to get rid of the Ronins? They are the only ones capable of stopping me."  
"But doesn't their armor form Hariel's treasures?" This he was sure of.  
"We don't need the actual people, we just need the armor. The humans and their...attributes are nothing more than vessels for the armor to reside on. In death the armor will simply go somewhere else. The only reason they aren't dead now is because they are the only ones who can control their armor at this time. As for the Ruby...I still have yet to locate where that is, but I have time. Plenty of time..."  
"Looks like you've thought of everything."  
"Of course I have. Every possible detail."  
"Then why aren't you Lord of the Three Realms yet?"  
"In due time Little One. The Realms just aren't aligned yet, but the moment they are..."  
"You will create the treasure?"  
"Yes, and that is the day the Ronin shall die...it occurs in five days."  
Ryo frowned at the statement. Five days? Although the amount may seem short, it was a long time...  
"But...Macabre...isn't there something wrong about this?"  
Macabre's head snapped up, wine forgotten, "What do you mean?"  
"I mean," Ryo took a shaky breath, knowing he was over stepping his boundaries, "maybe we shouldn't do this..."  
"Excuse me?" hissed Macabre. Ryo hesitated, but continued.  
"We shouldn't do this. It's not right. Ruling the Three Realms isn't all that important..."  
"I suggest you stop your traitorous actions now. And if you do not, then you will be isolated."  
Ryo flinched, "I...Isolated?"  
Macabre smirked, "Yes, I believe that will be the correct punishment."  
"No! I'm...sorry."  
"Good."  
  
"To find the weakness and exploit it, is that the only thing we can possibly think of?" asked Rowen. The other Ronins shrugged, not seeing any other way.  
"Dammit." Rowen cursed softly. This was not looking good at all.  
"I don't get it," Sage murmured, almost inaudible. Kinto looked at him.  
"What? What don't you get? Because I'm confused by the whole situation. I mean, for Godsakes look at us! How did this happen?! We're supposed to be the Ronin Warriors! We're supposed to be a team! Only, our so-called 'Leader' betrays us for a stronger power and we're left here, rotting away, in some damn dungeon that he himself put us in! To top it all off, we're sitting here, planning on revenge instead of trying to look of a way out of this damned hell hole!! What happened to us? We're supposed to be invincible...."  
"Supposed' is the key word. We're 'supposed' to be a team, a fighting force, we're 'supposed' to be the good guys, we're 'supposed' to be all-mighty, but dammit Kinto we're only human!" Sage argued. "The human nature is a very complex thing Kinto. No human on Earth is ultimately 'good'. There is a dark side to each and every one of us! In some more prominent than others."  
"I happen to agree with Sage, although this is hardly the time or place for philosophical matters. Maybe we should look beyond the obvious reasons here." Rowen replied.  
"And those reasons are..." Sai muttered.  
"Well, why don't we look at this from Ryo's stand-point," he ignored Sage's flinch, "as far as we know, he really doesn't have the desire to control anything. And because of that, I don't think he'd willingly working for someone who wants to control, well, everything."  
"So...what are his motives then?" asked Sage. He sighed and put his face in his hands. "There's something we're missing...I'm missing..."  
"I feel so...small right now...I guess..." murmured Sai, staring at his hands.  
"What's wrong with us?..."  
  
Ryo bit his lip uncertainly as he tip-toed down the corridor. He knew better than this...no. Macabre didn't control all of him, not yet anyway. And in the meantime, he was going to figure this out. Where had everything gone wrong? This wasn't supposed to happen at all...was it? Oh...he faltered when he reached the castle's sub-levels. The dungeons were just ahead.  
Why did he feel so...nervous all of the sudden? Was it because he was going against his master's orders? What could it be?  
Right now, it did not pay to be him.  
One thing Ryo remembered was believing he had a purpose in his life. Right now, that purpose was thoroughly blurred, along with the lines between good and evil...sanity and insanity. He whimpered softly and pulled slightly at his long hair. What defined that anyway? Making up his mind, he stepped forward and walked to the first door he knew *they* were being held. As he stared at them, images sped behind his eyes, going so fast, none of them stuck or could be comprehended. Just streaks in his head.  
Was he the only one that found that strange?  
They were having some kind of conversation, they didn't notice him. Ryo frowned. He didn't like that.  
"Excuse me, I hate to interrupt you, but there's something I want you to do." They stared at him and the one in orange...what was his name?...  
"What if we don't want to do any favors for * you *?" he sneered. Ryo cocked his head to the side.  
"You have no choice." was all that he said, opening the prison door. "Get up and follow me." They all hesitated, but the one in green stood.  
"Fine." he muttered. His eyes locked with Ryo's for a second, before the gaze was averted. He seemed so sad...and disturbed? Ryo sighed. Ignore that, he thought to himself. The rest followed, glancing every so often at him.  
"Where are we going?" The Dark Blue Ronin asked, sounded peeved. Ryo didn't answer him, only open a large door. They stared out into the large landscape, that wasn't very impressive at all. It was just a large field, that was covered in tall wheat...well, black wheat with blood red leaves. The sky was brown, with very little light, it could have been day or night. Red lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the landscape for a brief second before plunging it back in darkness.  
"Where the hell are we?" The Orange One demanded.  
Ryo smirked, "You just answered yourself. You are free to go. Macabre has no clue that I'm doing this. You must get out of here...something bad will happen if you don't."  
"What are you talking about?" asked The Light Blue Ronin.  
"Just go." With that, Ryo slammed the door in their faces, locking it securely. He gave a soft sigh and slid down to the ground. A small sense of...sick joy passed through him as he looked at the door. In a voice not of his own he laughed.  
"Have a nice time in Hell..."  
  
ANGEL: I didn't like that...*frowns in thought*  
RYO: Well that was nice of me...  
SAGE: I know, sending me off into Hell.  
ROWEN: What about the rest of us?  
SAGE: ......  
ANGEL: Anyway, I repeat that I am very sorry that I took basically forever on this. I got some issues that need to be taken care of...*sighs* I'm sorry. Not to mention I have to go get a new computer. This chapter was actually much longer than this. But the damn thing shut down on me, deleting all my unsaved work, which was a lot, and...*sighs again* not including the damn disk errors...technology is such a bitch...  
KINTO: Why can't you just use a baseball bat?  
TOUMA: Because that would break it even more!  
SHU: So? You would feel satisfied.  
SEIJI: This is pathetic. Why can't we agree on anything?  
RYO: We still haven't even chosen a movie yet! It's been months too! Kuso...  
SHIN: I still say we should watch Casablanca...  
ANGEL: Anyway, the next part, if the computer will cooperate with me...*mutters* piece of crap...will come much sooner..  
SAI: That wouldn't be too hard. You took so long on this one.  
ANGEL: Hush Fishie...On a lighter note, I'm contemplating (big word!) on a story idea...  
SHIN: I thought I was Fishie...  
ANGEL: No, no, no, no. Ryo is Pyro, Sage is Flirt King, Rowen is Airhead (but only because his head's in the clouds), Kinto is Hard Head, Sai is Fishie, Ryo is Sweetie, Seiji is Blondie, Touma is Hoshi, Shu is Mr. Garbage Disposal, and you Shin, are Sushi.  
SHIN: ......  
SAGE: What an odd list of nicknames you have for each of us. Flirt King.  
RYO: Sweetie?....  
ANGEL: I was running out of ideas.  
ROWEN: Airhead?!?!  
SHU: At least you aren't Mr. Garbage Disposal!!!!  
RYO(Pyro) : I happen to like mine.  
ANGEL: Thank you Ryo, anyway, review if you want. I don't really care how many I get, but a lot would be nice. See ya!!  



End file.
